But like so many things, there is good news and bad news to the coverage.
In talking about the global effects of the bill and nailing the ugly cast of characters (i.e. Martin Ssempa, Scott Lively, etc.) for their creation and support of this genocidal bill, ABC gets an A:
Standing onstage in black velvet robes, despite the stifling heat in the open-air church, Pastor Martin Ssempa's face is a mask of disgust.
"Anal licking!," he shouts, directing the crowd's attention to the images of hardcore gay pornography that he's projecting via his laptop. "That is what they are doing in the privacy of their bedrooms."
"Everything having to do with eating of poop…heterosexuals do not eat poop," Ssempa said. "And if they do, they are misguided, they are not real heterosexuals. We don't practice, that's an abomination. It's like sex with a dog, sex with a cow; it's evil."
Homophobia In Uganda
Ssempa's animated style has made him one of the most popular preachers in the African nation of Uganda. But it's his virulent homophobia that's put him at the center of an international uproar. The pornographic images, which reduced some of the churchgoers to tears, were meant to whip up support for a bill under consideration in Uganda that would make some gays and lesbians eligible for the death penalty.
ABC News makes no bones about just who is responsible for bill, making sure to place the blame where it belongs. Furthermore, the article also casts a light on the gay Ugandans in the middle of this crisis:
Val Kalende, a lesbian, said it's dangerous just to walk down the street. "Just the other day a colleague of mine was detained and questioned by police," she said. "Every time you come back home safe, you thank God you are safe. But then you don't know what's going to happen the next day."
Kalende said that while Uganda has always been a homophobic country, things got worse after the conference the American evangelicals spoke at.
"So those guys should be held accountable for what is happening to us," she said. "And I hope that the people in America can hold these guys accountable for what is going to happen to us if this bill ever passes."
But, as I said before, there is bad news to the coverage and it has to do with the subheading of the article:
The Proposed Bill Could Punish Homosexuals Who Marry With Life In Prison
Like my online buddy Wendy, who brought the story to my attention said, that nasty bill has nothing to do wih gay marriage.
And to add a little more to her statement, this bill is about genocide; the murder of a group of people under the guise of law and order and Christianity.
The desire to marry is the least of the problems our lgbt brothers and sisters in Uganda face. We must never forget that.
And ABC News owes it to them to get the story right.
Actually, I think the subtitle was good framing psychologically. Getting married is something most of the audience can identify with, so the subtitle gets across the point that Ugandans are being threatened for mundane, not exotic, things.
ReplyDeleteSo while on a purely rational basis a marriage ban is the least of what Ugandans face, emotionally it's what will grab the audience's attention. Progressives need to learn how to sell themselves; all too often we end giving our audiences homework assignments instead.
while i still disagree with the subtitling, you are definitely on point with the fact that sometimes we have to keep things simple when explaining things to folks.
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